Summer gatherings should highlight food that is delicious but easy to prepare. No one wants to spend a lot of time in the kitchen when the weather is hot. A talented French cousin once told me that during the summer months all the use-the-stove dinner preparations for the evening meal should be done in the morning.

Here’s a make-ahead “jumble” of roasted red bell peppers and feta cheese that can be prepared up to one day in advance and refrigerated. It’s an easy-to-fix appetizer or first course, a filling that can top baguette slices or Belgian endive.

If you want to take a shortcut, buy a jar of roasted bell peppers and skip Step #1.

PROCEDURE

1. To roast bell peppers, line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Add peppers in single layer. Place 6- to 8-inches below broiler element; broil until lightly charred, about 5 minutes. Rotate peppers with tongs and char on all sides. Remove from oven and cover with foil; let rest 5 minutes and remove top sheet of foil. When cool enough to handle, peel, seed and chop.

2. Add peppers to bowl. Add remaining ingredients: garlic, oil, juice, green onion and feta. Toss to combine. Place a spoonful of mixture on each endive leaf or place on baguette slices.

Join the Conversation

We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. Although we do not pre-screen comments, we reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. We might permanently block any user who abuses these conditions.

If you see comments that you find offensive, please use the “Flag as Inappropriate” feature by hovering over the right side of the post, and pulling down on the arrow that appears. Or, contact our editors by emailing moderator@scng.com.